Draíocht
Exhibition of Paintings
by Paddy Lennon
January 28th - February 17th 2005
Catalogue Notes
"Colour hadn't been a very important part of my work, light certainly, but colour was very much the second cousin to form.
It was while in Mexico that I first discovered the lesson of the sun, the lesson of Cezanne, that form is at its maximum when colour is at its maximum.
Through a balance of colour, the light of the sun can be transcribed into painting. Matching its brightness is impossible, but we can make our eyes receive a similar stimulation through the vividness of hue, if not exact, at least an intense illumination.
The visual exuberance of the landscape, the richness and the rhythm of life, are essential to my art. What I seek in painting is a sensation of rest, of peace, of awe."
These words of Paddy Lennon's, written several years ago, still apply to his work today. To these sensations of rest, peace and awe, one can add a wonderful sense of space. "Aerach" is an Irish word which describes these poetic observations of the Irish landscape, now reduced to its very essence, uncluttered, subtle, mysterious, evocative. His birds - eye views are achieved with what look like a few masterful brushstrokes.
The landscape is kept at a minimum, merely suggested by glimpses of bogland, rock, water, sky. His use of vibrant colour and magical light can change the mood and atmosphere of these images even as the viewer is basking in the interplay of form and tone.
These paintings are from the storehouses of his memory, calm, full of wonder, with no suffering or pain.
Gerald Davis, 2005